"The well of the blues never runs dry for me," says John Mayall with a smile. "It's always an inspiration to play this music." No clearer is that sentiment better expressed than with "Spinning Coin", Mayall's superb new release from Silvertone Records. Rightfully acknowledged as one of the pioneers of the British blues movement, Mayall has enjoyed an illustrious career that spans nearly forty albums and more than three decades. Widely acknowledged as the father of British blues, Mayall remains its hardiest perennial, continuing to expand the boundaries and impact of the music he loves.

"Spinning Coin", Mayall's second disc for Silvertone, is no mere nostalgia trip. Mayall, in fact, shuns such celebrity oriented fare, subscribing instead to the simple pleasures he derives from writing and performing new material, as well as extending the blues tradition. "We are continuing the music based on the past, but it is by no means of the past," clarifies Mayall. "The best blues players reach their own individuality not by copying, but becoming an extension of the people that have gone before. This is what keeps the blues contemporary. You don't ever rely on your past to get you through anything. Live in the moment and communicate to people on that level."

Recognized as one of the most famous talents scouts in music history, serving as a bandleader and mentor to such artists as Eric Clapton, Peter Green and Mick Taylor„three of the most acclaimed guitarists of the rock era, Mayall's most recent discovery is Buddy Whittington, whose fiery lead guitar work rages throughout "Spinning Coin", reaffirming a time honored Bluesbreaker tradition.

"Buddy's playing reminds me of Stevie Ray Vaughan," says Mayall. "He's from that part of the country and grew up with that tradition around him." Performing with a blues outfit known as the Sidemen, Whittington had the extreme good fortune of showcasing his considerable abilities while an intrigued Mayall watched from the wings. "I was extremely impressed with him," recalls Mayall. "I just couldn't believe what I was hearing„and that doesn't happen very often. I took down his telephone number and filed it away, thinking that if there was ever a time when [former Bluesbreakers guitarist] Coco Montoya leaves the band, I'll give Buddy a call. I didn't care how long it took, but I knew that this was a guy I wanted to play with."

With Whittington joining veteran Bluesbreakers Rick Cortes and Joe Yuele, Mayall resumed his collaboration with co-producers R.S. Field and Dave McNair„the team responsible for "A Sense Of Place" and "Wake Up Call", Mayall's last Grammy nominated Silvertone release„to record Spinning Coin. "It's become a real family affair," admits Mayall. "The three of us get together and discuss ideas and motivation. It's obvious that we have a good rapport and the same creative direction."

Following in a long line of classic Bluesbreakers' albums, "Spinning Coin" was founded on an engaging mix of Mayall originals and classic blues interpretations. "I was attracted to 'When The Devil Starts Crying' because of the beat and Its simplicity," he explains. "Bobby Field conceived the production to be a three layered assault, beginning very simply with guitar and voice so that it got right up in your face. Once you got accustomed to that, the band would kick in with some heavy duty rhythm. The third wave would be the baritone sax and the whole works! It was a very exciting way to approach a song like that. If we had done a straight forward reading of the demo we had, It wouldn't have had half the impact."

"Spinning Coin", the album's title track, is a sparse acoustic blues deeply rooted in the Delta blues tradition. Musically, I was reminded of some early Tommy McLennan records where he played in that particular key and used that sort of structure. I was reaching back to the roots and that's the way that I wanted the music to be treated. Joe Yuele did not use a conventional drum kit for this. Somebody had given him a 1922 bass drum with a calf-skin head and wooden shell. We had that flat down on the studio floor and hit it with big mallets every other beat. The main rhythm was played on my kitchen stool. That came about because that's what we were using when we were originally rehearsing the song in my garage. No other piece of wood had that tone, so we brought the kitchen stool in to the studio just for that song."

R.S. Field's "Long Story Short" and Fontaine Brown's "Ain't No Brakeman" targeted familiar blues themes; lost love and the fragile balance of passion and pain. "Those storylines are com- mon to anyone who has had a relationship that didn't work out and still has some regrets about it," relates Mayall. "It wasn't hard for me lyrically to identify with that."

Mayall composed the solemn "Double Life Feelings" during a Bluesbreakers soundcheck just prior to a recent performance in Sweden. "The theme of being away from home is one that musicians share," admits Mayall. "They have this life, playing for people and being on the road„which they really love„but they also love their home life and you can't always have both. It's the juxtaposition of those two lifestyles that make you sometimes feel as if you are living a double life."

A broad mosaic of musical influences have for many years informed Mayall's sound and unique style. The music of "Spinning Coin", and, in particular, "Run", continues that tradition. Mayall explains. "I had a tape of some tribal drums which were pretty exciting and I had the idea to use them as the basis for a song tracing the connection between African roots and the horrors of slavery along the lines of the prison work songs Alan Lomax recorded for the Library Of Congress. I wanted it to be extremely primitive, with a tear-my-throat-out type of singing because of the desperation in the story. I pulled out all the stops trying to get it as raw and savage as possible."

Acknowledging the many blues greats whose music has inspired him has long been a Bluesbreakers trademark. For "Spinning Coin", Mayall revisited the music of J.B. Lenoir, which resulted in the haunting rendition of the guitarist's timeless classic, "Voodoo Music": "Through the years I have always been partial to the music of J.B. Lenoir," says Mayall simply. "Originally, Buddy and I rehearsed the song without drums just to see how we might do it as a duet. Then [bassist] Rick Cortes joined in and that was the way we were going to leave it. When we got to the studio, Bobby Field thought that using Joe Yuele's big, old bass drum was the way to go. While we used those old drums, there were no cymbals recorded on that track. We wanted to create an earthy, primitive shuffle. We created a different sound, but the feel was very much like J.B.'s wonderful old records." "No Big Hurry", a new Mayall original, was intended as a tribute to legendary blues pianist Big Maceo. "'No Big Hurry' is an absolute, dead-on tribute to Big Maceo, one of my greatest piano heroes," states Mayall with pride. "I loved all of those sides he did with Tampa Red on guitar. To capture that feel I played a Big Maceo record to Bobby and Dave McNair and they were able to pick up on the sound of the piano and guitar. It's a language we all understand as musicians. They did best to capture that flavor, especially the way the acoustic piano was recorded." In keeping with such memorable Bluesbreakers' recordings as "Nature's Disappearing", "The Laws Must Change" and "Accidental Suicide", "Remember This" provided a platform for Mayall to voice some social observations that were close to his heart. John explains. "Lyrically, 'Remember This' gave me the opportunity to make some social comments which I felt kind of close to. Not a 'You must do this, you must do that.', type of thing. I wanted people to compare the old days with the way things are now. This song gives you something to think about, which is exactly all I want to do. You don't want to get to pushy, but you want to throw things out for people to consider. That's what all blues performers do." The two remaining compositions also touch on the theme of social awareness. David Grissom's "What Passes For Love" and Juke Logan's "Fan The Flames" address various problems in the world around us with pleas for all of us to contribute a more positive attitude and a willingness to help others. Musically "What Passes For Love" drives like mad, thanks to some pretty funky organ playing. "When they got that Hammond set up for me in the studio, I was Jimmy Smith!" laughs Mayall. "Fan The Flames" provided Mayall with a grand piano opportunity to pay tribute to two other keyboard legends; Fats Domino and Little Richard. "That was a very catchy rock'n'roll piece that Juke had submitted and I felt we should have one of those on the album," reasons Mayall. "It's got that classic Fats Domino beat, but with room for a Chuck Berry type of guitar." Despite having toured the world over and shared the stage with some of the finest musicians of all time, Mayall's spirit and enthusiasm, as evidenced by "Spinning Coin", continue undiminished. He has, rather remarkably, steadfastly refused to stray from the music he loves, facing down trends, the whims of a fickle audience, and even MTV. His formula for his multi-generational fan base? An honest, sincere commitment to the genre whose music he has helped spread throughout the world. "I can't fake music," says Mayall simply. "I'd be spinning wheels if I had to guess what people wanted me to play. The best way to go about it is to play what you feel with as much honesty and emotion as possible."